Folding chair



O. E. HILL FOLDING CHAIR May 23, 1950 3 Sheets-Sheet l Filed April 10. 1946 .'"M 23, 195@ O, E, HILL 2598,39?

FOLD'ING CHAIR Filed April lO, 1946 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 /f fig. .5'

1N VENTI/2.'

ABY

May 23, H950 o. E. HILL 2,508,607

FOLDING CHAIR Filed April lO, 1946 .'5 Sheets-Sheet 3 Patented May 23, 1950 UNITED STATES* 2,508,607

FOLDING Diva, E. Hill, Worcester, Mass.assignorto-r Reve wood-Wakefield Company, Gaumen-Massa a `oorlmration of Massachusetts- Application April T0, 1946; vSerial Noi-681,138-

(Cl. sl55-414,485)

This invention relates-izo `foldingchairs vwhich can -be set upifor-'useor.collapsedztola relativelyV flat-condition 1in which they can be readily.- stowed in v'narrow spaces.

The invention'relates more particularly to .a folding or collapsible chair foruse'on rrailway Ver-rieles.k It is anobj eet zo "the .intentiontcrpro:V vide -acnair which can Lbe set up fforuseorstovved in collapsed condition, yfor example, under a Pullman berth.

Itiis a-further object of the invention to vprovide la folding or collapsible chair :which is sturdily built, lis loc-ked in its- Vset-upv position `for use and which Acan readily. be #collapsed .or fsettup as ,-desired.

According to the invention, ithelchair is providedwith :a back-rest which can be rockedfiorward-When released to asubstantially horizontal prone position upon the seat.of1the :chair- The rocking of the 'back rest to `the prone position automatically unlocks side assemblies which .include 'the legs .of theV chair `so that ysucio ,side assemblies can be :rocked from their normally vertical position into a horizontal positiompartly or -whollyibeneath the seat. frame.

For a :more :complete l,understanding of .the invention, `reference :may be 'had :to Y the'ffo'llowing description of .certain 4enfibodiments thereof and to sthedrawings, of which:

Figure i1 .is :a side elevation :of La ichair embody ing the invention; i

Figure L2 isa fragmentary sectional View oi the locking latch :employed-in the 'chair shown in Figure 1,;on alarger scale;

'Figure 3 is amear -riew of :the schan-:shown Vin Figure 1.;

`Figuren is .a fragmentary nview of fa .portion of a side `frame, a. v4portion .being broken away to showin section;

'Figure 15 isla fragmentary sectional View of one of fthe iocking `devices for thefside frames;

Figurelis asideelevation of a chair .embodyling a :modified form of the invention, a, portion .being broken away.;

^ Figure 7 is aerear '-.view-.of1thesame, .a-portion being lbroken away; l

Figure .8 :is a rear `-.ele\zational.-.View 0i' theachair shown .in Figure 6, in .its folded :or collapsed lcondition;

v Figure 9 yis fa .fragmentary :sectional view of the locking latch.

The -chair shown in Figures 11 .to 5 :comprisesa 1seat frame I0 lon whichis preferably uan upholstel-ed seatvcus'hion :12. A-back .rest .I4 is pivotfrom thefluprigntl postionlshown in .rigore-i1 to' l ameterl'for interlocking mitnithe-fside.assemblies of theiohair. Y

Hinged-,to the-seat Aframe ,l 0 vaitthe sides thereof are fside Y`.assemlnflies 13,0 "whichA are preferably but not; necessarily tubular, iheses1eeassemfblieslin ciudingnower iportions and ,34 :which act lees `ser:-S11r1imrtir1ef-membersfor ,the @chair ,itseli and an npper;,portion .3,6 whichfmay loe-,used -.-.to support an iarm mest :3a.` messideassembles 0 are::hingedv to the fseat frame lo ;t o rock .about axes :4.0 which extend imm front to 'realiandere nearly;4 horizontal.l Whenrreleased, .tileyficanbe rocked V.from 'their upright position ias `lindieaftei inmgure 13k :toftheir -eollapsed position which substantially. horizontal and which indicated inidotted Y v v .As.shown.=in'fF3igures Amnd ayflockingmeans is gprovfided ,ea'chl'o the sideassemblies f.; 370,. such lockinglmeansomprisng ,2i-block @42 :Welded or :otherwise fseeurediat fasuitalole point therein, the blockttz :havinga ,neutral naiiiiiyfei adapted tofreceive .the buttonfl'n ftheiadiaent :side @f theeback frest. ,The ieee of the-.block- 4.2 which [i5 toward the back restiMispronided withfanopeii-v ingyABVithe. y'honizsontal-dimension :QWhch is greaterzthanlrthe `vertical dimension. Tfhe but-,ton 24, `as J-indicated iintigure `.14,nis elongated so l,that itslength .isigreaterithan zitsfwidth, these dimens sions 'fbeing relatedxto sthezdimensinns of fthe fopen# ing .A6 iin such za. way ,:as'atoepermit the fbutton2g toipassithrough Lthe npeningdinntothe .caytyM when dshe ,longidimension of the .button is .paitliel :to the iongjriimension tof zthetopening iwas indi catedin dotteddines inligure Whemhoiweyer. the` button :Mds turned to. thefpositon shown tullelinesin :Figurexf-,nthe ends thereof engage :the wallioftneblockiu ahove and Ainelow they-aprire .ture .s as:;indicated fin Figure i5. Wlien fthe ibut'- :ton-144s inlsuchzposition within the eat-iin' M :the .side assembly docked against any-.nomine :movementtowardritsecollapsednondition. Singe :the buttonsare integral withathge moclcshaftsfi of :theibackrrest dit-mneyrotate with-.the backrest :when the latterzsis swung-about thezaxisffof'ithe (ally'mounted onanpairzoffstandards .lswhichfare 55 shaftsilffromffits-upright positional" .uscito .its

fav-Apart oivthe seat :trame so as tofrock` :fonwand prone position. The angularrirelationiof thexbnt in Figure 4, thus releasing-the corresponding side assemblies 30 which can then be swung down from their upright position of use to their collapsed horizontal position. While the back rest is herein sho-wn and described as carrying the buttons 24, and the side assemblies 30 are shown and described as carrying the hollowA blocks 46 which interlock with the buttons, it is obvious that these elements can be interchanged so that the buttons are carried by the side assemblies and the blocks l by the back rest.

When the chair is set up for use, a suitable latch mechanism is provided to lock the back rest in its upright position, such latch mechanism may be in the form illustrated in Figure 2. As therein shown, a plunger 50 is vertically slidable in a tube 52 which is welded or otherwise secured in or to the rear cross member of the seat frame |0. This plunger projects through a hole 54 in a plate 56 which is mounted in the lower edge of the back rest |4. An inclined ange 58 is provided at the forward end of the plate 56 to engage the bevelled surface 60 at the upper end of the plunger 50 when the back rest |4 is rocked to its upright position. The lower end portion of the plunger 50 is connected to a lever 62 which is pivoted at 64 to a bracket 68 secured to the seat frame |0. The lever 62 may be in the form of a bell crank having a vertical arm 88 which is pressed by a suitable compression spring 0 which yieldingly maintains the plunger 50 in its uppermost position from which it can be readily moved by depressing the lever 62. The extremity of the lever 62 is in the form of a pedal 12 which can be engaged by the foot ofthe operator to depress the lever. When the back rest is swung up again to its upright position, the lower end thereof, being below the pivot I8, swings to the left in Figure 2. The inclined iange 58 thus engages the bevelled face 80 to cam the plunger 50 downward so'as to permit the back rest to reach its upright position in which the hole 54 registers with the bore of the tube 52. The plungeri thereupon springs upward through the hole 54 under the inuence of the spring 10, locking the back rest in its upright position of use until it is released by depression or" the pedal 12.

A modied form of the invention is illustrated in Figures 6 to 9 which show a collapsible chair having a seat frame 80 on which is mounted a. suitable seat cushion 82. A back rest 84 is rockably mounted on seat frame 80 so as to be rocked about a hinge axis 86 from the upright position shown in Figure 6 in full lines to the prone position shown in dotted lines in the same figure. Arm rests 88 may be pivotally mounted as at 90 on the side walls of the back rest so that the arm rests can be swung upward from the nearly horizontal position of use illustrated in full lines in Figure 6 to the idle position alongside of the back rest, indicated by dotted lines in Figure 6. A stop pin 92 carried by the arm rest 88 engages The chair is supported by four legs |00, the two legs on each side of the chair being rigidly connected by a bar or frame member |02 which extends from front to rear, the combination of frame member |02 and two legs |00 at each side of the chair constituting a side assembly which is hingedv to the seat frame 80"'asl at |04. Each rear leg |00 -is provided with an .oblique-extension |06, the upper end of which engages under a sector |08 secured at the lower end of the back rest 8 4. The sector |08 is preferably a suitably' shaped plate having an arcuate flange ||0 at its lower end to provide a wider bearing surface for the upper end ofthe arm |06. As indicated in Figure 7,- when the back rest 84 is in its upright position of use, the sector |08 bears on the upper extremity of the corresponding arm |08 and thus Y prevents the side assembly of which this arm is a fixed lug 94 carried by the back rest to limit the can then be rocked down to its prone position upon the seat cushion 82.

a part from rocking from the position indicated in Figure 7. When the back rest 84 is rocked forward to its prone position, the sector |08 swings clear of the arm |06 so thatthe corresponding side assembly can then be rocked about its axis |04 to swing the legs |00 into the horizontal position under the seat frame indicated in Figure 8. If desired, a spring may be carried by each side assembly so arranged as to tend to swing the assembly to its upright position of use. In Figure 6 such a spring ||2 is indicated, this spring being around a short shaft ||4 which is an extension of the pin of the rear hinge |04. The drawing illustrates the foregoing mechanism on the left hand side of the chair, but it is to be understood that such mechanism is duplicated on the right hand side of the chair.

Suitable latch mechanism, such as is illustrated in Figure 9, is provided to maintain the back rest in its upright position of use. Such mechanism may comprise a vertical plunger |20 slidable in a tube |22 which is welded or otherwise secured to the rear cross member of the seat frame 80. The upper end of the plunger |20 is bevelled as at |24, this bevelledV end normally projecting through a hole |26 ln a' plate |28 mounted in the lower edge of the back rest 84. The plate |28 has an inclined ange |30 at its forward end to engage the bevelled end |24 of the plunger when the back rest 84 is swung into its upright position of use. Such engagement of the plunger by the iiange causes the former to be forced down so that the plate |28 can move into the position shown in Figure 9 with the hole |28 directly above the tube |22. The plunger |20 is then sprung upward so that its upper end enters the hole |26 and locks the back rest in its position of use. For this operation the plunger |20 is connected near its lower end to an operating lever |32 pivoted at |34 on a bracket |36 xed to the seat frame 80. The lever |32 is preferably in the form of a bell crank having a vertical arm |38 extending up from the pivot |34, the arm being pressed by a spring |40 in such a direction as to cause the plunger |20 to move upward. A treadle |42 is formed at the rear extremity of the lever |32 to facilitate depression of theV plunger |20 by the foot of the operator to release the back rest 84.

When it is desired to fold or collapse this chair, the treadle |42 is pressed downward until the upper end of the locking plunger |20 is clear of the plate |28. The arm rests 88 are swung up to their idle position and the back rest is then swung down to its prone position on the seat cushion 82. This results in the removal of the sectors |08 from the upper ends of the arms |08,

permitting the side assemblies to be rocked against the torque of the springs I I 2 to swing the chair legs under the seat frame as shown in Figure 8.

The springs I I2 are preferably not strong enough to rock the legs |00 back to their vertical position when the chair is collapsed as shown in Figure 8 and is resting on the floor, the weight of the chair being suicient to keep the legs in their collapsed position. If the collapsed chair is lifted from the oor, the springs ||2, assisted by gravity, will rock the legs back to their vertical position, whereupon the back rest 84 can be swung to its upright position, thus locking the legs in place. In this position the two legs |00 and their connected member |02 engage against one or more stops |03 lon the frame which serve to limit outward swinging movement of the legs and cooperate with the sector |08 to support the legs in the open vertical position of Figs. 6 and 7.

I claim:

1. A folding chair comprising a seat frame, side frames hinged to said seatlframe to rock from upright positions of use to horizontal positions, a back rest having a frame pivotally mounted on said seat frame and rockable forward from an upright position of use to a prone position above the seat frame, and interlocking means carried by said back rest frame and each said side assembly, said interlocking means comprising a button element and a cooperating element having a cavity adapted to be entered or exited by said button only when the button element and cooperating element are in a predetermined angular relation which is assumed when the back rest is in its prone position, the element carried by said back rest frame being rotatable with the back rest frame in its rocking movements.

2. A folding chair comprising a seat frame, a back rest pivotally mounted on said frame for movement from an upright position of use to a prone position overlying the seat frame, a side assembly at each side of the chair, each side assembly including support means for its side of the chair pivoted to the seat frame for movement from an upright position of use to a collapsed position beneath the seat frame, cooperating locking means carried by the back rest and the side assemblies and operative to lock them together in their said position of use and to release the side assemblies when the back rest is pivoted forward to its prone position, a locking latch carried by the seat frame, a spring normally moving the latch into engagement with the back rest to hold it in said upright position, and a foot pedal for withdrawing the latch.

3. A folding chair comprising a seat frame, a back rest pivotally mounted on said frame to rock forward from an upright position of use to a prone position overlying said frame, side assemblies hinged at the sides of the seat frame, each said assembly including supporting legs for its side of the chair rockable from an upright position of use to a collapsed position under the seat frame, an oblique arm carried rigidly by each side assembly and engageable against a stop surface on the seat frame when the assembly swings to the position of use, and arcuate flanged plates carried by the back rest in position to engage said arms in opposition to the stop surfaces and hold the assemblies in upright position when the back rest is rocked to upright position,

OIVA E. HILL.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 376,886 Holden Jan. 24, 1888 592,695 Coonrod Oct. 26, 1897 2,310,345 Bell Feb. 9, 1943 2,453,027 Marks Nov. 2, 1948 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 361,632 Great Britain Nov. 26, 1931 

